Motor Upgrade for DC question

[Grant Stevens]

I have a lead on a Baldor 3HP motor for not much money. I was trying to figure out what I could supersize in my shop with it. One thought was my DC...

I have a Jet 1100 with a Wynn cannister that I am using with 4" flex hose. I would like to upgrade to 6" pipe, but I have been somewhat worried about taxing the existing 1.5HP motor with that much airflow. What about swapping in the 3HP motor? I know that this setup would be limited by the 12" impeller, but I would think that it would be better than the 1.5HP and would have plenty of extra headroom to avoid burning up the motor.

So, 2 questions:
1) Is this a stupid idea? Should I just wait until I can afford a cyclone?
2) If it's not a stupid idea, is this reasonable to do. The current motor can be rewired for 220VAC, so the switch, etc can take 220. Not sure that it can take 15A at 220V, which is what the 3HP motor is rated at. Also, I'm not sure whether the starter cap, etc would need upgrading.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Grant

[Michael Gabbay]

Grant -

I have the 1100 with an upgraded AFF top bag. I run a 6" mainline about 5' then down to 5" for the main run. The 1100 does not have any issues handling that. I would not be concerned about running your duct work with the exisiting DC setup.

As far as the 3hp motor is concerned you will probably not see any difference in performance since the impeller is staying the same diameter.
Mike

[Ken Garlock]

Hi Grant, and welcome to the Creek. Do stop by frequently, it is a great place to wade. :)

Regarding the motor question, Michael was right on track. Given that the present motor is running at the same speed as the new Baldor, you will not see any difference.
There are several kits available for building your own cyclone. They vary from a box of precut sheet metal to a fully assembled cyclone minus the blower and motor. Your job is to decide the route you want to take, build or buy a cyclone. If you build, get the motor now. Even if you decide later to not build, you can probably sell it for more than you paid.

Oh yes, if you decide to buy, Oneida is the company of choice, IMO.

Good luck, and once again Welcome to the Creek.

[Grant Stevens]

Thanks for the replies. My thoughts on the potential improvement from the bigger motor were:
a) increased suction if the 1.5HP couldn't keep up with a higher flowrate from the cannister filter and bigger duct, so that the impeller would slow down, or
b) improved reliability since the 1.5HP motor could burn out from overcurrent with increased airflow.
It sounds like neither is true. I'll leave the DC as is!

I looked around at building my own cyclone since I could save on the motor, but I don't see how I could touch the Gorilla price with substantially more effort and potentially inferior performance. I think I'll save my pennies and hold out for the Gorilla.

And thanks for the welcoming - I've been reading here for a while, but never had any intelligent posts to make. It's a great forum.

Thanks again,
Grant

[John Miliunas]

Welcome to our little corner of the Internet, Grant! Oh, and a SPECIAL "high-five" to a fellow Cheesehead!:D Come often, stay long and participate! As you may have seen by now, there aren't a whole lot of dumb questions out here and I usually have the market cornered on those!:rolleyes: :o

I think your decision to forego the DC upgrade is wise. Actually, if you've got a line on that Baldor, which may disappear after a while, I'd still really consider it. Remember, some of THE best deals out there are on old iron, often with 3 phase motors. In many cases, a 3hp motor would more than take care of those needs!:) :cool: